Long-wall conveyer



Jan. 26 19276.

H. A. HOLZER LONG WALL CONVEYER Filed August 4, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet l H. A. HOLZER LONG WALL CONVEYER .Fam 26 1926.1y

Filed August 4, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 5 mf. L l N @im m7# H@ IML@ Patented Jan. 26, 1926.

UNITED STATES 1,571,009 PATENT UFFICE."

HIRAMnALHOLZER, 0F KANSAS CITY,`MISSO'URI, `ASSIGNQB T0 UNITED IRON WORKS,

' INC., 0F KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, A CORPORATION QFJ MISSOURI.

LONG-WALL coNvEYnn.

Application filed-August 4, 1924. Serial No. 729,955.

To' all whom t may comer/n.:

Be it known that I, I-I-IRAM A. I-IoLzER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Kansas City, Missouri, have invented a kcertain new and useful Improvement in Long- VVall Conveyors, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, such as.

will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention frelates to conveyers of the kind that are 'used in mines for conveying the mined material-from the point at which it was removedfrom the earth to the cars used to carry said material out of the mine. One object of the invention is to provide a highly eiiicient conveyer/of the type commonly referred toas long wall conveyors that can be used successfully` in very shallow mineral veins. Another object is to provide a long wall conveyer that -is particularly adapted for use in shallow vein coal mines, due to the fact that it isof such construction that it willy convey riablel or brittle coal a considerable distance with less liability of breakage than the conventional long wallconveyer.

Another object isr to provide a long wall conveyer having the desirable characteristics above described, which is of such construction that the length of the conveyer can be easily changed.

Figure 1 of thedrawings is a sectional view. illustrating my improved conveyerarranged in operative positlon in a mine.

Figure' 2 is an yenlarged side elevational view of the delivery 'end portionof said conveyer. i f

Figure 3 is a side elevational viewof the receiving end portion of the conveyer.

Figure 4 is a top planview of the conveyer, partlybroken away, so as to il1us-.

trate the construction of the same; and

Figure 5 is a transverse sectional view, taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 4.

I have herein illustrated my invention embodied in a long wall conveyer that is particularly adapted for vuse, in shallow vein coal mines`for conveying coal from the point where it has been undercut and shot loose tothe cars in the main entrance of thevmine in which the coal is transported outy of the mine.

In Figure 1 of the drawings ldesignates a tunnel or passageway of relatively slight depth formed in a shallow or thin vein of coal.` A designates as an entirety my improved conveyer which is arranged in said tunnel and B designates a mine' car in the main entrance of the mine intol which the relatively small pitch, say, for example, a

five inch pitch on which the coal isi/carried to the point of discharge, thus reducing breakage of the coal to a minimum. And still another novel charactristic of the conveyer is that the housing in which 'thechainstravel is built up of a number of sections detachablyconnected together, thereby enabling' the length of the conveyer to be easily increased or decreased.

In the drawings which illustrate the pre ferred form of my invention, 2 designates a plurality of endless chains, preferably .chains having a-relatively small pitch, 8

designates a -drive shaft at the discharge end of the conveyer provided with drive sprockets l around whichthe chains 2 travel., 5 designates a shaftl arranged transversely of the conveyer atthereceiving end of same and provided with idler sprockets 6' around which the conveyer chains travel, and C `designates as an entirety a housing for the chains constructed in the form of two super imposed .troughs 7 and 8 through which the top and bottom portions of the chains travel. Any suitable means can be used for' operating the drive shaft 3, such, for example, as

an electric motor D operatively connected with said drive shaft by a driving mechanism designated as an lentirety in Figure 4 by the reference character 3a. In order to produce a conveyer that can be operated eiiieiently with a minimum expenditure of power, and whosev dimensions are small enough to permit it to be kused successfully in a shallow vein of coal, I use driveY sprockets 4 and idler sprockets 6 of relatively great diameter andmake the housingC coinparatively" shallow or of a depth less than said sprockets, the top vand bottom portions of the chains being brought together adja- ESSUEF cent the ends of the troughs 7 and 8 in said housing by means of guide sprockets 9 arranged behind the drive shaft 3 on the uuderside of the conveyer and guide sprockets l() arranged in front of the idler sprockets (l at the upper side ot' the conveyer. ln most instances the chain housing C will comprise a shallow bottom trough 8 provided with a solid bottom wall over which the return flights of the chains drag, and a top trough 7 provided with a flat, solid bottom wall T and inclined. or flared side walls 7h, as shown in Figure 5, the bottom and side walls of said troughs being` formed from sheet metal. The chain housing C as an entirety is constructed in sections so as to enable the length of. the conveyer to be changed easily by increasing or decreasing the number ot' sections of the chain housing and increasing or decreasing the length of the conveyer chains 2 and While the particular details of construction of the chain housing are immaterial, each section of the housing is preferably made up of a framework that carries shallow pans which act as troughs for the chains, and said sections will he arranged end to end and connected together by bolts or other suitable fastening devices arranged in laterally-projecting fianges 11 at the ends of said sections, asl

shown in Figure 5.

The drive sprockets .4 and the guide sprockets 9 arranged adjacent same are carried by a supporting structure, designated as an entirety by the reference character l2, which is attached to one end of the chain housing, and the idler sprockets 6 and guide .sprockets 10 arranged adjacent same are carried by a supporting structure, designated as an entirety by the reference character 13 in Figure 3, that is attached to the inner end of the chain housing. Preferably, the supporting structure 13 is provided with guideways 13a that receive adjustable blocks 14 which carry the shaft 5 that supports the idler sprockets 6, said blocks being adapted to be adjusted longitudinally of the guideways 13a by manipulating adjusting screws 15 so as to take up the slack in the conveyer chains.

In operating the conveyer the coal or other mineral, as it is removed from the earth, is deposited on the top portions of the conveyer chains at a point in front of the guide sprockets l0 and is carried by the chains 2 longitudinallv of the top trough 7 and discharged into the mine car B located adjacent the discharge end of the conveyer., @wing to the fact that the coal is carried by the conveyer chains through the top trough of the chain housing, instead of being dragged by said chains over the bottom of said trough, coal that is friable or brittle can be transported a considerable distance with minimum breakage. The mainv advantage ot the conveyer, however, is that the 'liain housing of same is low enough to enable it to be used successfully in a shallow or thm vein ot' coal, it being possible toconstruct the chain housing in the form of two relatively shallow, superimposed troughs, due to the tact that the conveyer chains, after passing around the drive sprockets and idler sprockets, are brought together b the guide sprockets f) and 10 arranged at tie opposite ends ot' said troughs. The above described features, coupled with the fact that the length of the chain housing can be easily varied, makes my improved conveyer particularly adapted 'for use in low coal where it is impossible to work the 'coal with the room and pillar system.

Having thus describedmy invention, what l claim as new and desire. to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. A long wall conveyer for mines, comprising a chain housing made up of a number of sections detachably connected together and each comprising two superimposed, shallow troughs provided with solid ottoms, a plurality of endless conveyer chains of relatively small pitch arranged,

to support and convey the material through the top trough of the housing and to return through the bottom trough of the housing, driving sprockets and idler sprockets at the ends of said housing around which said chains travel, the diameter of said sprockets being greater than the depth of said chain housing, and guide sprockets arranged adjacent said driving sprockets and idler sprockets and disposed so as to hold the top and bottom portions of the chains in substantially parallel relationship at the opposite ends of the chain housing.

2. A long wall conveyer for mines, comprising a chainhousing made up of a number of sections, each ot' which comprises two superimposed, shallow metal troughs, laterally-projecting flanges at the ends of said sections, fastening devices passing through said flanges for detachably connecting them together, a plurality of endless conveyer chains of relatively small pitch arranged to support and convey the material through the top trouUh of the. housin and return through t e bottom trough, rive sprockets at one end of said housing around which the chains travel, idler sprockets at the opposite end of the housing around which said chains travel, means for adjusting one of said groups of sprockets longitudinally of the housing' to take up the slack in the chains, and guide sprockets disposed so as to hold the top and bottom portions of the chains in substantially parallel relationship at the ends ot said housing. l

HIRAM A. HOLZER.

titi 

